


I Saw the Light

by hufflepurls



Category: Harry Potter - Fandom
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-18
Updated: 2018-12-18
Packaged: 2019-09-21 17:03:25
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,420
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17047127
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/hufflepurls/pseuds/hufflepurls
Summary: Bringing someone home for the first time is always the worst.





	I Saw the Light

**Author's Note:**

> For my Griff. Who has never failed to be there for me when I've needed them the most. <3
> 
> Song lyrics are from Hank Williams' "I Saw the Light".

_"I wandered so aimless life filled with sin"_

It wasn't like this was the first time that Cormac had ever brought anyone home to meet the family. Though, he was sure that none of that exactly counted considering the first had been his best friend in high school, Libby, and everyone had assumed they were dating their senior year.  They had just never bothered to correct anyone as Libby didn't want to date and wanted to focus on her studies and Cormac hadn't wanted to admit to anyone, let alone himself, that he wasn't into girls as much as he wanted people to believe.  He knew all too well how dangerous it was to be gay in his small hometown in Louisiana.  And at the time, there was no way in hell he was going to risk _anything_ getting in his way of playing college football.  Football had been everything to Mac, so much so that he had even went to go live with his grandparents because they lived in a better school district and he might get noticed easier.  Not that it was ever hard to spot the man.  Even when he was skinner, Cormac was six foot six and there weren't that many sized boys like him, let alone ones who had decent hands, feet, and could run.  He hated running, but, football was his life.  His passion.  His way to make something of himself, and something that made him actually feel good about who he was. It was nice to get the attention for something positive, and he wasn't about to say no with living with his grandparents either.  Cormac loved his family deeply, which is probably why he was so anxious about this trip, but with them it just was...different.   His grandfather had taught him how to build things. Not just things, houses. Cabinets. Furniture. Headboards.  Craft something beautiful out of a block of wood.  His grandfather had started a business out of building homes, something his father had taken over and if football hadn't panned out, Cormac would have happily taken over.  And his Nan...in his mind Mac still owed everything to that woman.  She encouraged him, scolded him, and well, just loved him for who he was.  Mac had a suspicion that she knew he was gay long before he was ready to admit that himself.  She was the one that had helped him pick out which school to go to, telling him to be bold and go with Alabama and play right off instead of playing it cautious and go to LSU and wait two years to play, and started laughing about playing in the snow at Notre Dame with him.  They had a good laugh about that four years later when she stood with him taking pictures as Cormac got drafted by the Packers.  It was for all of these reasons and more that he had all of the confidence of bringing someone home.

It was just everyone else that he was worried about.  Granted, his brother was still deployed so at least his royal asshole highness wouldn't be there.  And his sister was still off at the her dream school on the east coast.  His mother...well...to be honest, Cormac wasn't sure how she would react.  They all knew _who_ he was bringing home.  Someone had broken the news to his parents because of Mac's social media that he thought he had cleaned up well enough where assholes wouldn't find him.  He had been wrong and the next thing he knew he had a sobbing conversation with his mother asking him why he was doing this to them.  And asking what happened to the nice girl that he had brought home in college.  Mac had reminded his mother that the girl had just been someone from his dorm who needed a ride back to Baton Rouge, and he was being a nice person. It had taken months for him to convince them to just...meet with Oliver.   And about just as long for his father to respond to a message.  His father had grown up Catholic, which is what Mac had become since moving in with his Nan, but after marriage he converted to the more popular Baptist church in the area.   It was hard. Beyond hard.  But the saint that sat beside him right now was the reason he knew he had gotten through all of this. 

There was nothing that would convince him otherwise that Oliver was not a saint, and often told him so, much to a simple shake of the other man's head and denial about that.  But to Mac he was.  He had been in better shape when he met Oliver.  Neither Oliver, nor California had been in Mac's plans. But one career ending injury,  switching careers to coaching high school football, and a long string of long night drinking, anger, and half living in denial had lead him out to warmer temperatures.  The plan had been to go home, to take care of his Nan since she was starting to slow down (not that she'd admit she was) and without his sister around to help, he was going to take it up.  But then he got a job offer too good to pass up, and after several conversations ending in "Don't make me come up to that frozen wasteland again and make you move" later, he had been moving cross country.  Oliver...from the first time he met the other man there was something different about him.  Even just over chance beer and burgers, Mac had connected with him that he hadn't with someone in a long, long time.  Even if it just started out as friendship.  Before long Mac had to take the chance and ask him on a real date.  The first one with another man he had let himself have in a long time.  Up until Oliver it was secret meetings, one night stands, and drunk hook ups that he only half remembered.  He hadn't been a good spot then, but working through all of it, the devastation and the acceptance of his change in his life, but also accepting who he was...it was easy for him to see how this path lead to the man beside him.

Oliver had been more than understanding when Mac had said that it might not be a great idea for him to meet his family after the first time he had met Oliver's.  Mac loved Oliver's family, even if they supported all of the wrong teams.  But he loved it, the playful banter, his mother's hugs, just, it felt real and he felt accepted for who he was for the first time since leaving his Nan's house.  Of course, Nan had met Oliver rather quickly when Mac had flown her out for that first Christmas they were together.  Ever since Mac swore that she talked to Oliver more than he did.  And he loved it.  He had been scared at first, almost threw up the first time he skyped and told her about him.  But she just looked at him with that familiar stern look and asked him why in the world he thought she would stop loving him _now_ after all of the teenage bullshit he had put her through, and then started to laugh.

But bringing him home was different.  All last night he knew he barely slept, even with the usual calm presence of his boyfriend wrapped up in his arms.  Instead of worrying about things he had tried to just study the way that man's hair was laying, the way his hips curved just so, the cute little snore that came out every once in a while when Oliver shifted oh so slightly.  They had flown out early and during the flight Oliver's hand did not leave Mac's thigh and Mac just put his hand over his and held it tightly. Silently telling the other man how much he loved him.  Mac didn't just love people. He loved them deeply.  And this was someone that he could honestly say he would choose over his parents.  This was his person and he didn't care if they hated the idea of them.  He was just grateful that they were going to give it a chance.   And in the event that this was a total disaster, well, Mac had plans.  Those plans included a rather nice hotel down in New Orleans.  They had planned to drive the hour down there and spend a few days so Mac could show off one of his favorite cities in the world to him.  Oliver had asked how  much his portion cost, and all Mac did was pull the smaller man into his lap, nuzzle his neck and gently say that he could pay for all of the beignets that Mac would be eating.  Oliver looked confused for a moment, his gray eyes searching for something deeper before poking Mac in the stomach and telling him he'd get a stomach ache. 

The flight arrived on time, much to Mac's annoyance, and Oliver patiently let him stall for time after picking up the rental car, and then pretending to "get lost" on the way to find some food in Baton Rouge.  Oliver knew damn well what Mac was doing, but let him do it anyway because it was scary how well Oliver knew him.   No more so when Mac was fiddling with the radio trying to get _anything_ to play that wasn't a sermon, rap music, or whatever was passing for country these days.  He liked all of these things, but right now, none of it felt right.  Again, he felt that hand sit gently on his lap and Mac settled onto a station.  It was country but it was old country.  Johnny Cash, Loretta Lynn, Hank. The kind of music that was half country, half bluegrass, half gospel. It was the first thing that had felt like home since they had gotten into the rental an hour ago.   Or maybe it was Oliver.  He had grown up outside of Baton Rouge, so he knew it wouldn't take long to get to where they needed to.   But as they pulled off of the highway and started to take older roads through smaller towns, Mac both started to relax, and get anxious all at once. 

"'m sorry." he mumbled for the fifteen time since they had gotten up that morning and Mac turned to look at the man he honestly could say he was ready to spend the rest of his life with.  A rather odd thought for the man who up until Oliver, had loudly proclaimed that marriage wasn't in the cards for him. Period.  Oliver's eyes were warm and his lips were pressed together, though they started to form into a slow, but small, grin.  He knew he was just as nervous as Mac was and Mac felt like an ass for not doing more to reassure him.  Oliver shook his head and squeezed Mac's thick thigh.  "Stop." he said gently, Mac knowing that he meant about saying he was sorry. "Whatever happens, happens.  I'm not going anywhere."  Fuck did he love that man.  At the next red light Mac leaned over and pecked him on the cheek.  It was the bravest thing he'd ever done in this state, and he was just getting warmed up.  "There's my school." he pointed out a wall of nerves started to build up inside of him, even though they would be staying with Nan, and seeing his folks tomorrow.   Oliver looked at the school as they drove by and was quiet for a moment.

"So that's where it started, huh?"  
"What started?"  
"Your obsession."  
"I'm not obsessed."  
"Mac, you turned around this morning because you forgot your 'lucky 'Bama hat."  
"I don't travel without my lucky hat, you know that." he protested.  
"You turned down a blow job because the game was on."  
"....okay fair." he had to laugh a little at that, and he felt some of the tension leave his shoulders.  "In all fairness so did you when the Sharks were on." he loved that Oliver was just as obsessed with hockey as he was football.  It was that sort of passion that linked them together.  And it was also that sort of passion for each other that Mac knew what Oliver was doing, getting him to laugh and relax a little bit more.  
"What are we listening to?"  Oliver asked a few moments later when the commercial break ended and the music came back on.  It wasn't meant in a mean way, but in true Oliver fashion, curious.  As if still putting together the puzzle that was Cormac even though they had been together for almost two years now.  
  
Mac reached over and turned up the volume a little bit letting the gentle song float between them.

 

_I saw the light I saw the light_  
No more darkness no more night  
Now I'm so happy no sorrow in sight  
Praise the Lord I saw the light

 

"The perfect song." he let a grin spread over his face as he put his hand on top of Oliver's.  He wasn't sure how, or if this was some kind of sign, or just really good timing.  But listening to those words, words he'd heard thousands of times, he felt like it was true.  Maybe not in the Jesus come and save me way that it was meant. But, here was this man beside him who made him feel like it was okay to be himself.  That it was okay to be proud and confidant.  To have something in his life that made him feel like he was where he was supposed to be and be with who he was with.  "I love you, Ollie." he said as he made the turn into his nan's driveway and cut the engine, not moving from his seat to get out and just looking at the person that he had chosen.  He wasn't a drunken mess any more.  And although he was still nervous about this trip, he honestly believed what Oliver said, that it would be okay.  One way or another.  Oliver would love him even after this probable disaster of a trip.  And to him, that meant the world.  Oliver was a light in his darkness, and Mac would do whatever it took to keep it shining.  And felt it even more when Oliver said he loved him too.


End file.
